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. 2022 Jun 13;17(6):e0269639.
doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0269639. eCollection 2022.

Inequities in the incidence and mortality due to COVID-19 in nursing homes in Barcelona by characteristics of the nursing homes

Mayara Louise Torres  1   2 , David Palma Díaz  3   4 , Alba Oliver-Parra  5   6 , Joan-Pau Millet  3   4 , Delfí Cosialls  5   6 , Montserrat Guillaumes  3   4 , Cristina Rius  3   4 , Hugo Vásquez-Vera  3   4
Affiliations

Inequities in the incidence and mortality due to COVID-19 in nursing homes in Barcelona by characteristics of the nursing homes

Mayara Louise Torres et al. PLoS One. .

Erratum in

Abstract

Background: Residents of Nursing Homes (NHs) have suffered greater impacts from the COVID-19 pandemic. However, the rates of COVID-19 in these institutions are heterogeneously distributed. Describing and understanding the structural, functional, and socioeconomic differences between NHs is extremely important to avoid new outbreaks.

Objectives: Analyze inequalities in the cumulative incidences (CIs) and in the mortality rates (MRs) due to COVID-19 in the NHs of Barcelona based on the characteristics of the NHs.

Methods: Exploratory ecological study of 232 NHs. The dependent variables were the cumulative incidence and mortality rate due to COVID-19 in NHs between March and June 2020. Structural variables of the NHs were evaluated such as neighborhood socioeconomic position (SEP), isolation and sectorization capacity, occupancy, overcrowding and ownership.

Results: The cumulative incidence and mortality rate were higher in the low SEP neighborhoods and lower in those of high SEP neighborhoods. Regarding the isolation and sectorization capacity, Type B NHs had a higher risk of becoming infected and dying, while Type C had a lower risk of dying than Type A. Greater overcrowding was associated with greater morbidity and mortality, and higher occupancy was associated with higher incidence. The risk of becoming infected and dying in public NHs was significantly higher than for-profit NH.

Conclusions: The social components together with the functional and infrastructure characteristics of the NHs influence the cumulative incidence and the mortality rate by COVID-19. It is necessary to redefine the care model in the NHs to guarantee the health of the residents.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors have declared that no competing interests exist.

Figures

Fig 1
Fig 1. Flow diagram of the selection of the study population.
Fig 2
Fig 2. Characteristics of the NHs.
Description of the characteristics of the NHs of the city of Barcelona in the period March-June 2020.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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